Priceline ‘Pharmacy’ and Small World ‘Social Media Experts’ have some apologising to do

Consumers have a reasonable expectation that a businessbranding itself as a pharmacy will offer trustworthy and effective products. Dispensing chemists are an essential part of the healthcare system, and to leverage that credibility to market nonsensical pseudoscientific scams is a betrayal of trust. Caveat emptor? Not really: it is in no way unreasonable to expect a healthcare provider to, well, provide healthcare.
That is why I am enthusiastic supporter of the 10:23 campaign, born of frustration at Boots the Chemists’ admission that they have no evidence that the homeopathic potions they flog work at all.

Power Balance bracelets on sale at Priceline 'Pharmacy'

Power Balance wristbands are similarly lacking any scientific basis whatsoever. Furthermore it is no secret that Power Balance is bullshit: consumer watchdog Choice magazine recently awarded them a Shonky Award. So imagine my friend Peter’s dismay when he discovered that Priceline ‘Pharmacy’ are selling a $2 plastic bracelet for the ‘special’ price of $40?

Sadly, as the Boots example has taught us, there are all too many pharmacies keen to make a swift buck: to hell with their customers. Peter tried to contact Priceline by phone and e-mail, but was rebuffed. Undeterred, our hero left this comment on their Facebook page:

‘Are you going to remove Power Balance bangles from your stores, given that Choice Magazine has called them a “scam”, and the TGA has ordered Power Balance to issue this retraction for making unfounded claims?’

Peter's first attempt at contacting Priceline

Unsurprisingly, perhaps, Peter’s comment fell foul of the same Facebook bug that seems to plague pages of many quacks, frauds and liars:

Aargh! Gremlins!

So far, so typical. I happen to think that if you prefer to shut your critics up rather than listen to them, you’re doing it wrong. Priceline are, however, perfectly entitled to moderate discussion on their own page. Or, as it turns out, to pay someone else to do it.

I do, however, think a line was well and truly crossed when one of Priceline’s paid admins began to contact Peter by private message:

An unsolicited message from a representative of Priceline... to accuse someone else of spamming?

Well, now. An unsolicited message sent on behalf of a business in their own commercial interest… to accuse someone else of spamming? Pete was much more polite than I would have been.

Kathy, it seems, works for a bunch of clowns called Small World that (apparently sincerely), describes themselves as ‘Social Media Experts’. A glance at their own social media efforts suggests that to get ahead in social media, one should autoplay music played on a detuned guitar, and update Facebook no more than three times in six months. They don’t seem to have heard of the Streisand effect, though. Perhaps they will soon.

As for Priceline, I strongly prefer to shop in stores that have enough respect for their customers to refrain from passing off sympathetic-magic tat as health products. I’ll be shopping elsewhere in future.

I often pop into Priceline for bits and pieces. No more. Stocking powerbalance and similar products without a clear disclaimer that they are not scientifically tested and have only a placebo effect (if any) is, in my opinion, ripping off customers. I won’t shop there until I hear these products are withdrawn from sale, and will encourage my friends, also, to boycott the stores.

I would love to know if some people at Choice Magazine are on the take. They run down the large supermarkets like Coles and Wollies and support the small shops that triple the prices. Some small shops no doubt stock up on soft drinks etc from these Shops and ripp off people who are silly enough to support them.

This is supposed to be a free country. I shop at Priceline Bondi Junction and get wonderful service. They do not force you to buy anything why should they have to take something off the shelf that someone does not approve of. Check the Health Food Stores whose prices are well above Coles and also the grotty people who serve these Organic Foods and look like they have never had a bath. Some dodgy products in those stores but no one complains.

“I would love to know if some people at Choice Magazine are on the take.”

Because that would even it out between Choice and PowerBalance, you mean? Well, fair’s fair I suppose. Perhaps the people at choice should start a second career flogging nonsense products too, you know, for parity’s sake? Perhaps if they pounded their heads into a wall for a few months it’d lower their collective IQ until they were really even with the people who chose to stock PowerBalance?

As for Priceline, well, someone in the buying department is either on the take or on the wacky baccy, because PowerBalance is patent nonsense.

While we’re at it. I wonder if Sue is on the take? She looks like a shill for big quacka to me. Or, from her comments, a paid plant for big supermarket.

Full disclosure: I receive $25,000 per week from the Illuminati shill fund for my promotion of “skepticism” and “reason”. Any endorsement of Illuminati conspiracy may therefore constitute a conflict of interest.

The question regarding Woolworths and Coles is way off-topic for this post, but large retailers benefit from economies of scale. Furthermore, the near-duopoly in the Australian grocery market means these retailers can demand pretty keen pricing from their suppliers, who can’t afford to lose the big groups’ business.

In this context, small businesses can not compete on price alone. They may instead seek a niche as convenience retailers, with locations away from main shopping centres, longer hours, or they may have specialist offerings (health food, ethnic groceries etc).

I think we should be cautious in judging small retailers too harshly for being unable to compete with colossal firms like Woolworths or Wesfarmers. That said, of course there are piss-takers out there, and you are free to avoid them.

Priceline and Power Balance

Living in a ‘free country’ does not mean you can simply behave how you like. We must behave within the law, for example.

Furthermore, I am equally free to explain why I will not shop at Priceline. I believe Priceline should (but are not legally obliged to) take Power Balance from their shelves because Power Balance is a scam. As I explained in my opening paragraph, we have a reasonable expectation that a pharmacy will not flog us ineffective wishing bracelets making fraudulent health claims. That is why it matters: we should be able to trust them, and they are abusing this trust.

Regarding health food stores: I actively boycott all stores that flog homeopathy, iridology, reiki and many other kinds of so-called ‘alternative’ medicine. As it happens, I am planning to write a series of posts trying to find well stocked health-food stores that don’t sell bullshit quackery. We do complain, Sue.

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